We make our selections only after careful evaluation in our
own trial gardens.

How We Choose Our Seeds

Every year in early spring, I set about finding new varieties and contracting
with growers to produce new seed crops for varieties we currently offer. First
and foremost, I work hard to find good, sustainable and organic growers with the
skill and expertise to grow the high-quality, high germinating seeds we know we
can count on and our customers will be successful with. We have close
relationships with our growers, and many have become trusted friends.

While I always look for unique selections, my major criteria are still
excellence in flavor, color and ease of growing and garden performance for home
gardeners.

Varieties that grow best while the weather is cool are thriving now in
our spring garden. One favorite is our new Braising Greens Mix, a
colorful blend of 4 varieties: 2 colored chard varieties and two beets
grown here for their different colored greens. (This Braising Greens Mix
will be one of our new introductions for 2012). The fast-growing blend
is sown thickly in a garden bed or container. Baby seedlings can be
harvested very young as tender micro-greens, or grown larger to shear
off with a scissors at 4-5 inches for meltingly tender braising or stir
fry greens - really healthy and delicious eating at either stage.

We are also trialing several heirloom varieties of Red and Green
Borecole Kale. These frilly, nutrient-rich leaves will be a wonderful
addition to soups and pasta dishes, or just steamed with a little olive
oil and lemon juice.

Cool season flowers like
Sweet Peas, Godetia, and
Calendula are starting
to grow vigorously now that night time temperatures have started warming
up a towards 50°F. By the end of May, we will be seeing them burst into
bloom with their incredible colors. We are trialing several new Sweet
Pea combinations and some single colors, a double Godetia, and several
colors of a new Calendula bred especially for containers. These bright,
fully double flowers will grow to just 10-12 inches tall; perfect to
shine in containers on a patio with pretty edible petals to add to
salads or rice dishes.

Braising Greens Mix

Training Sweet Peas on netting

We've had so many
inquiries about drip irrigation, we'd like to
recommend the experts at DripWorks.

DripWorks
celebrates 20 years of providing gardeners with complete drip
irrigation systems. Drip irrigation delivers water directly to
the root zone, producing healthier plants while minimizing the
amount of time spent weeding and hand watering.
Raised beds are a great way to grow a vegetable or flower
garden. Once your bed has been prepared and planted, it's a
perfect time to install a drip irrigation system. Watch the
DripWorks
videos showing how simple it is to set up a drip system in a
raised bed. If you require more help, DripWorks offers a free
design service. To learn more, go to the DripWorks
virtual catalog,
request a free
catalog or visit dripworksusa.com.